Day trips from London

[SpicyTomatos]

Could anyone recommend some good day trips from London which are suitable for a nearly 2 yo and a nearly 5 yo, and can be reached by public transport?

A trip to Brighton was a big success, so I'm wondering about Margate, but I feel like there are probably lots of other fun things we can do.

I also saw some recommendations for Hever castle, but I wonder if they are a bit young for that.

Try tripadvisor, lots of advice on there.

Colchester Castle might be good fun. About 1h 15 from Liverpool Street and easily walkable from the station. I would highly recommend Colchester Zoo too, it's better (imo) and cheaper than London Zoo, but you will have to get a taxi there from the train station.

Adventure Island in Southend is a good day out for the 5 year old, and on a sunny day the beach is very nice, although busy. It's about 50 minutes - 1 hour from Central London depending on which train you get.

Best to go on a weekday to avoid the majority of the crowds.

Colchester Castle looks good and has the added benefit that I might like it even if the kids don't!

I would like to go to Adventure Island, the only problem I have is working out which rides we can go on based on height. I need to do some research about that. It's not helped that my eldest is almost exactly 1.20m, so I'm not sure which category he will be assigned to and whether that means I will need a ticket. Anyway, good idea, so thanks.

I would like to go to Adventure Island, the only problem I have is working out which rides we can go on based on height. I need to do some research about that. It's not helped that my eldest is almost exactly 1.20m, so I'm not sure which category he will be assigned to and whether that means I will need a ticket. Anyway, good idea, so thanks.

I was last there a couple of years ago, although I don't think it has changed since. It's all ticket based, although you can buy a wristband too. Entry to the park is free, it's just the rides that you need to pay to go on. If it will just be you looking after the two of them, you'd find it difficult. If there's a friend or partner who can look after the younger one while you accompany DC5 on the rides then it'll work well.

There's a filter option on their website to see which rides work best for you. adventureisland.co.uk/rides-and-attractions/

Chessington of course. What it lacks in whizz bang rises it makes up for in public transport accessibility.

Beckonscot model village is just a 5 minute walk from the station www.bekonscot.co.uk/getting-here/

We sometimes take the train to Brockenhurst and hire bikes from the station www.cyclex.co.uk/hire-new-forest They’ve got a few nice routes listed on the website. Last time we did Beaulieu & Buckler’s Hard and had a nice lunch at Steff’s Kitchen in Beaulieu which has a kids menu. They do both child seats and trailers. If you ring ahead, they’ll prepare them for you.

Leeds Castle normally has a shuttle from the station between April and October www.leeds-castle.com/Visit/Getting+to+Leeds+Castle. It’s hoping to restart on August bank holiday

Windsor is a very easy day trip. My Dc loved the duck tour www.windsorducktours.co.uk and we had a picnic and a walk in the Great Park.

[quote ClaudiaWankleman]I would like to go to Adventure Island, the only problem I have is working out which rides we can go on based on height. I need to do some research about that. It's not helped that my eldest is almost exactly 1.20m, so I'm not sure which category he will be assigned to and whether that means I will need a ticket. Anyway, good idea, so thanks.

I was last there a couple of years ago, although I don't think it has changed since. It's all ticket based, although you can buy a wristband too. Entry to the park is free, it's just the rides that you need to pay to go on. If it will just be you looking after the two of them, you'd find it difficult. If there's a friend or partner who can look after the younger one while you accompany DC5 on the rides then it'll work well.

There's a filter option on their website to see which rides work best for you. adventureisland.co.uk/rides-and-attractions/[/quote]
Yes, I will be on own which makes it a bit harder, but there seem to be a number of rides with no height limit that we can all go on together, so I think it might work. The difficulty I had in Brighton was there were a few rides where children between 1m and 1.4m needed to be accompanied which made it impossible for any of us to go on them. There is nothing about that on the Adventure Island website.

@NeverTalkToStrangers

Chessington of course. What it lacks in whizz bang rises it makes up for in public transport accessibility.

I used to go there as a kid, but for some reason never considered it. I can even go this year during term time due to late start of reception. Anyway, thanks for the suggestion.

@Ricekrispie22

Beckonscot model village is just a 5 minute walk from the station www.bekonscot.co.uk/getting-here/

We sometimes take the train to Brockenhurst and hire bikes from the station www.cyclex.co.uk/hire-new-forest They’ve got a few nice routes listed on the website. Last time we did Beaulieu & Buckler’s Hard and had a nice lunch at Steff’s Kitchen in Beaulieu which has a kids menu. They do both child seats and trailers. If you ring ahead, they’ll prepare them for you.

Leeds Castle normally has a shuttle from the station between April and October www.leeds-castle.com/Visit/Getting+to+Leeds+Castle. It’s hoping to restart on August bank holiday

Windsor is a very easy day trip. My Dc loved the duck tour www.windsorducktours.co.uk and we had a picnic and a walk in the Great Park.

Thanks. Some excellent tips there. I would never have considered the model village. I have no idea if it will be successful, but it feels like a fun thing to try, so I think I will.

Also, hiring a bike is something I hadn't thought of. My eldest always wants to go on mine, but I don't really like it in central London and my bike won't fit a seat. Not sure it is possible to do two kids though, so I might need to wait until there is another adult.

I think I would enjoy Leeds Castle (I've always wanted to go) and Windsor, but I wonder if my kids are too young and it is one to do in a couple of years.

Yes, I will be on own which makes it a bit harder, but there seem to be a number of rides with no height limit that we can all go on together, so I think it might work. The difficulty I had in Brighton was there were a few rides where children between 1m and 1.4m needed to be accompanied which made it impossible for any of us to go on them. There is nothing about that on the Adventure Island website.

The individual ride pages indicate if anyone needs to be accompanied. From memory, I believe that quite a few do need accompanying. You wouldn't be able to do that on your own, with another DC of course.

I would save it for in a year or so, unfortunately.

Chessington is free for under 3s and has a parent and toddler ticket for £25. Hard to resist that.

I thought it would be worth updating this thread in case it is of use to anyone.

Beckonscot model village was a big hit with the kids and everyone else's by the look of things.

Adventure Island and Chessington were both successes although I was lucky to have one child taller than 1.20m. This was really important, because what I hadn't realised is that on most rides you can only accompany one child, so the other one needs to be allowed to ride on their own even if they are just in front of you. I'd recommend checking heights before going.

I went to Hampton Court instead of Colchester Castle. I'd rate it as a moderate success. Some interest from the eldest, but the visit was brisk, so not much chance of me seeing anything and whilst the playground and garden were nice, there were probably some easier and nearer options for those.

We also did a public transport tour of London. Tower bridge -> Thames Clipper -> Cable Car -> DLR. DLR was voted the best.

I’m glad they enjoyed Bekonscot. Another trip that I’d recommend is Hobbledown. Take the train from Waterloo to Epsom (35mins) and then catch the E9 bus from stop N at the station.

You can get to whitstable on fast train from st Pancras. Walk along seafront, fishing boats, sailing boats, fish and chips 😃. Look at WW2 defences out at sea if you own a pair of binoculars.

www.oddsfarm.co.uk/

This place has so much for kids and there are lots of seasonal events - it’s only 7 min taxi journey from Beaconsfield station.

Glad you enjoyed Bekonscot - it’s so quaint, old fashioned (in a good way) and engaging for little ones - different pace.

Hobbledown is great for those ages too

Bluebell steam railway. Accessible direct from East Grinstead station.

I thought I would add one more place that we have enjoyed to this thread - Gulliver's land. Lots of rides aimed at young children and currently £17 each for the early season. Being taller than 90cm is useful.

It needs a train to Milton Keynes, then one of a selection of buses. Buses are better on a Saturday than a Sunday. A £5 group ticket seems to cover all bus trips for a family for the day.

I still need to go to Hobbledown. Think I will go soon although Saturday also appears to be better than Sunday for buses.

Whitstable is lovely, particularly when it's a bit warmer